“Readers are friends, not food” new social media rules of behavior at WSJ

Wall Street Journal wants its journalists to be less promiscuous online. The reason is that “openly ‘friending’ sources is akin to publicly publishing your Rolodex”. WSJ is also nervous about leaks and lawsuits, advising its journalists not to “disparage the work of colleagues or competitors or aggressively promote your coverage.” Finally, journalists are advised not “to engage in any impolite dialogue with those who may challenge your work — no matter how rude or provocative they may seem.”

In an e-mail to employees, Deputy Managing Editor Alix Freedman wrote, “We’ve pulled together into one document the policies that guide appropriate professional conduct for all of us in the News Departments of the Journal, Newswires and MarketWatch. Many of these will be familiar.”

Dow Jones spokesman Robert Christie declined to comment to E&P today on why the updated rules were put out at this time, saying they speak for themselves. But it is clear they are in place for those involved in social networking on the likes of Facebook or Twitter, requiring editor approval before “friending” any confidential sources.  New ‘WSJ’ Conduct Rules Target Twitter, Facebook -From Editor and Publisher